Imbibition printing



ct. 30, 1945. J. F. KIENNINGER 2,387,914

- IMBIBITION PRINTING Filed Feb. 17, '1,944 v f UUQBUUUUUUQUUQU Z UUUUUUUUUUUU 'hef/[6725074 eff@ ,7a ,67'

Patented Oct. 3 0, 1945 IDIBIBITION PRINTING "John F. Kienninger, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to. Technicolor Motion Picture Corporation,

5 Claims.

In printing motion pictures'jby imbibition, vfrom a dye impregnated matrixtdadye absorptive blank, it is customary to employ a relief matrix in f which the gelatin coating' is thicker `in the shadows than in the'hghlghts and a blank comprising a layer of gelatinor` other dye absorptive material. In order` to obtainv good ldefinition in the picture printed on Ythe blank it is necessary to employ relatively hard gelatin and in order to maintain intimate contactbetween thematrix and blank while the dye is being'imbibed by-.the blank from the matrix, it is desirable to soften the gelatin on the blank temporarily. This is usually accomplished by passing the blank through a water bath in transit to the matrix in vorder to cause the gelatin on the blankto swell somewhat before it comes into contact with the practical matter it has been customary to coml promise between the two evils.

The aforesaid edge trouble results from the fact that the valleys 0f the relief matrix do not make good contact with the blank along the edge of the picture during the transfer process, as they would if the blank were swollen with water to a greater degree. This lack of intimate contact interferes with the transfer of dye, resulting in imperfect printing along the margin of the picture. Ordinarily this edge trouble is confined to a narrow zone just inside the sprocket holes. In the case of film having a sound-track inside one row of sprocket holes the edge trouble is usually confined to the edges ofthe pictures along the other row of sprocket holes; on the sound-track side the edges of the pictures are too remote from the sprocket holes to be subject to the trouble.

For the purpose of illustration a typical embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the apparatus for softening the edge of the blank;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3--3 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a face view of a film showing the location where the aforesaid edge trouble takes place.

The particular embodiment of the invention chosen for the purpose of illustration comprises a transfer machine of the type having a belt in Hollywood, Calif., a corporation of Maine Application February 17, 1944, Serial No. 522,721

lOl-149.1)

the form of a metal ribbon I trained over two drums 2 and 3 to travel in an orbital path, the belt having register pins along its margins to t into the sprocket holes of the blank and matrix. As shown in Fig. 1 the blank B and -matrix M are fed into superposed contact on the belt within a tank I which is filled with water. By bringing the lmstogether under water there is less danger of trapping air bubbles between the'two films. The belt enters and leaves the tank I through restricted openings. The water leaking through these openings is caught in a pan 4 and fresh water is continuously fed into the tank. In

transit to the tank I the blank passes through a water tank 6 in which the gelatin is softened to the proper degree for good definition throughout the entire area of the blank. Thence the blank passes to the device 'I where the gelatin along the margin of the lm is softened somewhat more.

As illustrated in Fig. 4 this additional softening is needed in the zone Z at the edges of the picture areas along the margin of the lm opposite to that carrying the sound-track T.

Suitable apparatus for effecting this additional softening along the margin of the film is shown in Figs. 2 and 3. 'Ihe blank B passes from tank 6 to tank 1 over a roller 8, thence under roller 9 in the tank I and thence over inclined rollers II and I2 mounted on the side of the tank by means of brackets I3 and I4. Intermediate the two rollers II and I2 the lower margin of the lm is bathed with a thin stream of warm water applied through the pipe I5 which is mounted on the sideof the tank I by means of brackets I 6 and I1. These brackets also-carry a plate I8 whose lower edge is directed toward the aforesaid zone Z. The pipe I5 has a row of perforations I9 directed toward the plate 68 and the water issuing through these perforations flows downwardly blank is obtained along the edge of the picture v area Where the aforesaid edge trouble ordinarily takes place. While this additional softeningA along the edge of the picture reduces the quality" of denition to`some extent, this is of no consequence along the extreme edges of the pictures.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of printing by imbibition from a dyed matrix to a blank having a dye absorptive layer which comprises softening said layer a predetermined amount throughout the picture layer to make it more dye absorptive, softening the layer a greater amount along the margin to maintain good Contact between blank and matrix during the imbibition printing, and Vthen pressing the blank and matrix together face to face to transfer the dye by imbibition from the matrix to the blank.

2. The method of printing by imbibition from a dyed matrix to a blank having a dye absorptive layer which comprises softening said layer a pre determined amount throughout the picture layer lto make it more dye absorptive, heating the mara dyed matrix to a blank having a dye absorptive layer whicli comprises softening said layer a predetermined amount throughout the picture layer to make it more dye absorptive, applying heated fluid to the margin of the blank to soften the layer a greater amount along the margin, and then pressing the blank and matrix together face to face to transfer the dye by imbibition from the matrix to the blank.

4. The method of printing by imbibition from a, dyed matrix to a blank having a dye absorptive layer which comprises softening said layer a predetermined amount throughout the picture layer to make it more dye absorptive, applying hot water to the margin of the blank to soften the layer a greater amount along the margin, and then pressing the blank and matrix together face to face to transfer the dye by imbibition from the matrix to the blank.

5. The method of printing by imbibition from a dyed matrix to a blank having a dye absorptive layer which comprises feeding the blank through a bath to soften said layer a predetermined amount throughout the picture layer, thence feeding the blank through a predetermined path, along said path spraying heated fluid on the margin of the lm to soften the layer a greater amount along the margin, and then pressing the blank and matrix together face to face to transfer the dye by imbibition from the matrix to the blank.

JOHN F. KIENNINGER. 

